thanks for the synopsis.. i can see why mr jackson left it out.. it seems not completely necessary for the story..

my wife keeps urging me to read the harry potter series, but i just cant do it.. 1st, i dont do big, long books.. 2nd, i am not into fantasy type stuff.. i am sure they are great books for people who dig that, but i dont..

and speaking of watching series, i am fixing to start the 'band of brothers' series this weekend.. i dont have HBO, so i havent seen a single episode.. i am looking forward to it!

I think you'll love Band of Brothers. I'm a WWII history buff, so I'm slightly biased, but I did enjoy it.

I've read all the Harry Potter's and have really enjoyed them too. Haven't seen the latest movie yet. Will have to wait till it comes out on DVD. It's my belief that anything that gets kids reading is wonderful. Reading has been one of the great joys in my life. I spend a lot of time waiting for doctors to get around to me, and as long as I have my book, I'm never bored.

Definition of "bummer": Finishing a book, and knowing the library is closed.

I've read all the Harry Potter's and have really enjoyed them too. Haven't seen the latest movie yet

I've read all the books as well (at the insistance of my 16 year old daughter). I have seen the third moviel and it was great. a bit of a different look to the movie, darker and more realistic. This goes along with the tone of the books, which get darker with each volume. I think it was the best of the three movies so far, and it has me anxiously awaiting the fourth in the series.

Mark

_________________________
"Shoot, a fella could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff"

I'm 43 and have read all the Lord of the Rings books (even attempted "The Silmarillion"(sp?)) as well as all the Harry Potter books...

After seeing the movies, it has prompted me to go back and re-read the books to refresh my head as to the original content as well as give me a different perspective on the filmmakers' interpretation of the books.

Anxiously waiting the EE of ROTK...

BigJohn, I understand your not wanting to sit for an extended period for the extended versions but that is what is good about having them on DVD...you can watch them at your pace...not what the theaters enforce...

I have found the EE of the first two films to be "more complete" having read them...

My .02,

WhatFurrer

_________________________
"Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup..."

Band of Brothers is terrific. Even if you are not a fan of war movies, this series is really all about the relationship of these guys. The final episode with the interviews of the actual guys was special.

Harry Potter has snared me. Read the books, saw the movies. Nicely done in general and entertaining to boot.

With cgi, it is astounding to see how much movies have improved in a short period. I though Dr. No was da bomb when I saw it as a youngster. Now it seems dull.

At least HT advances allow us to take advantage of all of the magic in the comfort of our homes. While I miss the cell phones ringing, the conversations, the uncomfortable (and SMALL) seats and my feet sticking to the floor, I only get to the movieplex once in a great while. Being able to hit "pause" and move around a bit with a nice HT setup to provide the thrills has become very attractive.

The set will feature more than 50 additional minutes of footage, including some 300 additional effect shots. Among the new scenes we were able to preview this weekend were: the final confrontation between Gandalf and Sarumon at Isengard, the "mouth" of Sauron at the Black Gate, Aragorn revealing the sword Anduril to Sauron's eye in the Seeing-stone, the confrontation between the Witch King and Gandalf at Minas Tirith, more battle footage on the Pelennor fields, Frodo and Sam marching with Sauron's forces disguised as Orcs, Faramir telling Denethor that he would never use the power of the Ring, Aragorn looking down upon a fleet of Corsair ships from a ridgetop, Faramir and Éowyn at the House of Healing, Merry pledging allegiance to King Theoden at Gondor, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli narrowly escaping an avalanche of skulls deep inside the Dwimorberg and MUCH more.